Coronavirus Poll: Stay-At-Home Order Has Strong Support In Ohio

BEREA, OH — The vast majority of Ohioans appear to support Gov. Mike DeWine's stay-at-home order and other restrictions put in place to stymie the new coronavirus, according to a poll conducted by Baldwin Wallace's Community Research Initiative (CRI).

Ohio's governor has earned national and international fame for his response to the COVID-19 outbreak. He is polling far more favorably than President Donald Trump in the Buckeye State, the poll found.

"Ohioans view DeWine as a credible source of information. He doesn't sugarcoat anything, and he leans heavily on public health experts, including Dr. [Amy] Acton. His apolitical, no-nonsense briefings have become Ohioans' go-to source for facts and reassurance," said Lauren Copeland, associate director of Baldwin Wallace's CRI. More than 90 percent of Ohioans said they trust the information they receive from DeWine.

The poll found that nine out of 10 Ohioans support DeWine's COVID-19 restrictions, including the stay-at-home order. A "supermajority" were worried protests against the stay-at-home order will trigger another spike in COVID-19 cases and deaths.

However, there are cracks forming in the overwhelming support for DeWine. Ohioans are split evenly on whether or not the state should begin to reopen on May 1. The governor has long trumpeted his plans for a phased reopening starting May 1.

A majority of Ohioans don't think many businesses or places of worship should reopen yet. They said they were worried the U.S. was moving too quickly to lift restrictions, the survey found. Many Ohioans said they would take a "wait-and-see" approach to resuming normal activities.

"Despite concern about severe economic effects of the shutdown, Ohioans are cautious about the health risks of reopening the economy, which could have an additional negative impact on businesses trying to reopen," said Tom Sutton, director of the CRI.

The decisions being made at the federal level have had a definite impact on Ohio voters and their disposition toward Trump, the survey found. Democratic nominee for president Joe Biden is now in a dead heat with the president.

"Ohio is absolutely critical for Trump to score another Electoral College victory this fall. Early on, many thought Ohio wouldn't be in play. Biden running dead even with Trump in the Buckeye state counters this narrative," said Robert Alexander, political science professor at Ohio Northern University.

Methodology

The Baldwin Wallace University Ohio poll was conducted between April 20 and April 25, in conjunction with Oakland University (Michigan) and Ohio Northern University. The survey was conducted online among self-identified registered voters in Ohio. Sampled individuals were emailed and responded to an online survey.

The results from the entire poll can be found online.